Citizens' Campus: Illness(es) and Death of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

PD Dr. Friedrich Meier | Uhlstädt-Kirchhasel

Much too young, at the age of 35, died the musical genius Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, of whom Goethe said: "An apparition like Mozart always remains a miracle that cannot be explained."

It is precisely this mystery and the unexplained circumstances of his early death that have led to a great deal of speculation and legend. Numerous theories and hypotheses put forward on this subject are as varied as they are partly absurd. For example, the legend that a strangely dressed "gray messenger" ordered a funeral mass, but also the circumstances of the funeral, have contributed not insignificantly to the myths surrounding Mozart's death.

The lecture draws on secured data not so much the gifted artist, but the man with his habits, his environment and his "medical peculiarities". On the basis of available medical facts, it illuminates and evaluates possible causes of death and recent research findings. Even today, the mortal remains of W.A. Mozart continue to puzzle us.